“There has been a steady decrease in cases we have seen in all four nations, and this continues,” the chief medical officers of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland said.

“It does not mean that the pandemic is over. The virus is still in general circulation, and localised outbreaks are likely to occur.”

With more than 80% of global trade by volume transported by sea, the world’s more than 2 million merchant seafarers play a vital role in keeping countries supplied with everything from raw materials and fuel to food and consumer goods.

Gopinath said the economic crisis triggered by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic was more global and playing out differently than past crises, with the services sector hit harder than manufacturing in both advanced and emerging market economies, and inflation low across the board.

“Investments held in corporate bonds are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of an economic recession, with some businesses likely to default on payments. Insurers operating in the US are heavily invested in corporate bonds compared to their UK counterparts, and US life insurers in particular are more vulnerable to the downturn – given almost three quarters of their investments are in this area. This is especially true in the life sector where there is a 49.7 percentage-point difference between investments in corporate bonds. It also illustrates that the UK has a certain amount locked up in the relatively safe government securities, while this is not available in the US.”